labels to webcasters: drop dead

That's a paraphrase of the headline of this commentary by Newsweek's Steven Levy, who marvels at the efforts of record labels to kill Internet radio, when it would seem that the medium fulfills a promotional function.

So why are the record labels taking such a hard line? My guess is that itís all about protecting their Internet-challenged business model. Their profit comes from blockbuster artists. If the industry moved to a more varied ecology, independent labels and artists would thriveóto the detriment of the labels, which would have trouble rustling up the rubes to root for the next Britney.